History of the Sabbath and First Day of the Week - John N. Andrews

eform movement at

eform movement at Wittemberg, and was supreme in the university. He attacked monachism and celibacy in a treatise 'Concerning Celibacy, Monachism, and Widowhood.' His next point of assault was the Mass, and a riot of students and young citizens against the Mass soon followed. On Christmas, 1521, he gave the sacrament in both kinds to the laity, and in German; and in January 1522, he married. His headlong zeal led him to do whatever he came to believe right, at once and arbitrarily. But he soon outran Luther, and one of his great mistakes was in putting the Old Testament on the same footing as the New. On Jan. 24, 1522, Carlstadt obtained the adoption of a new church constitution at Wittemberg, which is of interest only as the first Protestant organization ofthe Reformation."[3] There were present at this time in Wittemberg certain fanatical teachers, who, from the town whence they came, were called "the prophets of Zwickau." They brought Carlstadt for a time so far under their influence, that he concluded academical degrees to be sinful, and that, as the inspiration of 788

the Spirit was sufficient, there was no need of human learning. He therefore advised the students ofthe university to return to their homes.[4] That institution was in danger of dissolution. Such was Carlstadt's course in Luther's absence. With the exception of this last movement, his acts were in themselves right. The changes made at Wittemberg during Luther's absence, whether timely or not, are generally set down to Carlstadt's account, and said to have been made by him on his individual responsibility, and in a fanatical manner. But this was quite otherwise. Dr. Maclaine thus states the case:-- "The reader may perhaps imagine, from Dr. Mosheim's account of this matter, that Carlstadt introduced these changes merely by his own authority; but this was far from being the case; the suppression of private masses, the removal of images out ofthe churches, the abolition ofthe law which imposed celibacy upon the clergy; which are the changes hinted at by our historian as rash and 789